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Verna Gao's Korean spicy pork bulgogi
- Verna Gao
Published: February 25, 2026 at 4:46 PM
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Serves 4 as a sharing dish
Easy
Prep: 15 mins
Cook: 15 mins
plus marinading
A star rating of 5 out of 5.0 ratingsRate
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Make a Korean feast with content creator Verna Gao's spicy pork bulgogi with steamed rice, lettuce wraps and cucumber banchan
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Want to make authentic Korean bulgogi? Content creator and recipe developer Verna Gao (aka @vernahungrybanana) shares her recipe for spicy BBQ-style pork with steamed rice, crunchy lettuce wraps and cucumber banchan. Try her recipe below, then discover more South Korean recipes and learn 10 things we love about South Korean food. Read more about Verna Gao's new food travel series.
Verna says, "This spicy, sticky, flavour-packed bulgogi is perfect for a quick weeknight dinner – it’s seriously addictive and this is your sign to make it. You can use pork belly for this, but I personally love pork shoulder. I’ve paired it with lettuce, kimchi, spicy marinated cucumber and, of course, some rice. It tastes SO good and it takes me right back to my travels in South Korea. It's also a great meal-prep recipe as you can make it ahead of time and just serve it up when you're ready to eat." Also try our homemade kimchi recipe.
Watch her video below, then discover her recipe for crispy pan-fried dumplings. Find more of Verna's food and travel content over on olive's Instagram where she shares her favourite foodie destinations, including the best places to try local dishes and recipes to make at home. Keep an eye out for her next video...
Korean spicy pork bulgogi recipe
Ingredients
Nutrition
BULGOGI
-
1 garlic clove
minced
-
1 thumb-sized piece ginger
minced
-
1 tbsp gochujang
-
1 tbsp gochugaru (Korean chilli flakes)
-
1 tbsp honey
-
1 tbsp soy sauce
-
1 tsp sesame oil
-
500g pork shoulder
thinly sliced
CUCUMBER BANCHAN
-
1 cucumber
thinly sliced
-
1 garlic clove
minced
-
1 tbsp soy sauce
-
1 tbsp sugar
-
1 tbsp rice vinegar
-
½ tbsp gochugaru (or to taste)
TO SERVE
-
steamed rice
-
Little Gem lettuce leaves
-
kimchi
(optional)
Nutrition: per serving
- kcal369
- fat22g
- saturates7g
- carbs16g
- sugars14g
- fibre2g
- protein25g
- salt1.5g
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Method
-
step 1
First, make the bulgogi marinade. Mix together the garlic, ginger, gochujang, gochugaru, honey, soy and oil in a large bowl. Toss the pork in the marinade and let it sit for at least 20-30 mins.
-
step 2
To make the cucumber banchan, toss the cucumber with the garlic, soy, sugar, vinegar and gochugaru. Let it sit for 5 mins to soak up the flavours.
-
step 3
Heat a frying pan over a high heat and cook the pork for 8-10 mins until caramelised and cooked through.
-
step 4
Serve the bulgogi with steamed rice, lettuce leaves, kimchi and the cucumber banchan.
-
step 5
Serve with steamed rice, lettuce wraps, kimchi and the cucumber banchan.
Authors
Verna Gao
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